


Matchmaker

by Haesal



Category: Codename: Kids Next Door
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Humor, KND 274/362, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-02-08
Packaged: 2019-03-15 11:13:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13612176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haesal/pseuds/Haesal
Summary: All he wanted to have was some good ol' homemade breakfast at the Mckenzie's. What he'd ended up with was an overprotective father mistaking him for courting his daughter. 274/362.





	Matchmaker

_This was pretty fun to write. Randomly thought it up while I was contemplating my life in the shower._

* * *

**Teens Next Door Timeline**

**Genre: Humor, Romance**

**Title: Matchmaker**

* * *

Chad sat rigidly still, not daring to move a single muscle on the sofa at an effort to keep his presence as discreet as possible.

But he'd highly doubt that was enough to drive the attention away from him.

He could still feel a pair of critical brown eyes directed at him, pinning him in place in an at attempt at inevitably unraveling whatever they could simply by just running him up and down in all angles.

He swore that if only Maurice could see him right then and there, he'd burst out in a mixture of laughter and tears at his sorry predicament. Probably add in Cree with obnoxiously chanting 'wuss' at his face for days on end.

Well as much as it damaged his pride, the way he was acting at the moment proved he truly was a big sad wuss.

Smooth talking his way into any situation was supposedly his strongest suit as an elite undercover operative, but it was an unmistakable understanding that he just wouldn't be able to get out of this one as easily as he would've liked.

When you're in the company of Randolph Reece Mckenzie, he surmised just then that sheer discomfort was the inescapable effect to be felt.

Especially when the man was so obviously inclined to disliking the very person breathing the same air as he did in the 4 corners of 1 room.

Which Chad could evidently notice, was getting stuffier and stuffier as he arduously listened to the rhythm of the wall clock resoundingly ticking in his ears with how inexplicably loud the quiet was.

 _'Of all things I just had to be, a shameless glutton for hell's sake.'_ The regret was all too obvious in the confines of his thoughts.

It was an unspoken given that being Rachel's newly appointed partner in the TND did not necessarily mean he had to personally seek her out when passing on whatever news there was for the higher-ups to fill-her in on.

However, it would still ultimately mean interactions with her be it face-to-face or not. So, what better way to get the job done than to pay her private space a visit himself and if luck would allow it, be able to grab free breakfast courtesy of her mom's palatable cooking? It was a piece of cake and the only effort he'd have to expend would be his time.

Like killing 2 birds with 1 stone.

Except things didn't exactly go as planned.

What he'd expected to be a woman with flaxen hair and hazel eyes to answer his summons with a few raps of knuckles on the front door of the Mckenzie's turned out to be a well-built man standing at an intimidating height, who'd half-heartedly acknowledged him with the simple dropping of stern and calculating eyes.

More than likely due to the fact that there was a teenaged _male_ standing on their front porch, whom could only be easily inferred as someone who was acquainted with none other than but his own daughter of around the same age.

Technically, it wasn't a wrong assumption, yet Chad's intentions were gravely misunderstood.

All he wanted was some good ol' homemade cooking when his mother couldn't possibly find the time of the day to whip him up even a single meal. Granted he also hasn't visited their home in years, it was the perfect opportunity.

But what he'd ended up with was dealing with an overprotective Mr. Mckenzie who has had as clear as day, assumed he'd been after courting Rachel.

From then he was well aware he'd made a terrible decision.

It was easy to simply walk away and drop by another day the second he'd been given a negative and significantly icy retort when he'd asked if Rachel was home. Unfortunately, he'd just had to be that ever stubborn boy not allowing his pride to get crushed and stood his ground.

Which in turn led him to wait for her arrival in the family living room.

Now, there were specific defining characteristics with having to stage romantic relationships during his missions. Among everything else, they ended as early as they'd start the moment he'd finished up the job. Not once has he ever had actual commitments outside of undercover duty, and certainly had never reached the point where he'd have to sit down and get chummy with any of their parents.

To sum it up, he'd felt like he was thrown in the middle of the forest with no compass.

At an utter loss with his succeeding steps because if it wasn't obvious enough, Rachel was an entirely different case.

For all the gods he'd assumed were watching his awful fix, he'd prayed his cool façade stayed intact all throughout in his body language and wouldn't waver in the slightest.

"So, do you usually visit at around this hour, _son_?" Chad was sure he'd picked up a little venom at the otherwise, strive at courteousness with the term Mr. Mckenzie had preferred to address him by.

The man was slyly gathering information, and he could accurately translate his supposed harmless question as, 'Do you usually have the nerve to visit my daughter so early in the morning?'.

Oh no, he wasn't taking any chances.

The safest course of action would be to be as truthful as possible, jazzing it up with a spice of cordial formality in hopes of increasing his chances at making it through the uncomfortable conversation alive.

Chad then donned on the most charming toothless smile he could muster and mannerly turned his head to him. "No, not at all, sir. I'd usually stop by during the afternoons where it's more convenient for the entire household."

That was, if you'd consider his regular visits way back in their childhood days, however. Nonetheless, he'd felt quite confident with the answer he'd given.

But the immediate raise of Mr. Mckenzie's brow on his uninviting face quickly had the blonde-haired teen pedaling back and rethinking his strategy.

" _Usually_?"

He could feel a dribble of sweat roll down from his temple and the turned-up corners of his lips threatened to flatten out in a tight straight line.

_'Guess Papa-ckenzie doesn't like kiss-ass boys hanging around his daughter.'_

"Yes, that's right, sir."

"And what made you consider seeing her in the morning today?"

The perfect alibi ran through his head with the successfully predicted question he'd expected to come from the older man. Alright, maybe he _could_ turn the situation in his favor.

"Since Rachel's just recently started high school at Hendry, I figured it'd be helpful if she had a friend right away around campus. Help her shake off the awkward new kid phase and give a few tips about the ropes of things."

"By being as dedicated to the hmm, _friendship_...as to even see her on a weekend?"

Chad blinked once out of uncertain confusion.

Friends usually hung out during their days free, did they not? At least, that's what he understood whenever his teammates from the Teen Ninjas would phone him up for a round of soda the moment Saturday rolls by.

Right, there was nothing odd about that.

"Well, of course I'd be dedicated, sir."

If he'd been more inclined in the fictional side of things like Numbuh 3 was then Chad could've sworn he'd seen an exhale of fire bursting from Mr. Mckenzie's nostrils, burning the thickened moustache sitting right atop his mouth which had descended to a scowl.

He'd ducked a little out of defensive instinct, half expecting flames to actually come swirling violently to his direction yet managed to maintain a steady composure despite the palpable rise of temperature within the room.

Much as this one was different, it wasn't a secret that Chad dealt with other tricky situations during his intel gathering escapades as a double agent. There was just absolutely no room for him to lose his nerve.

Even if he had to agree that indeed, he'd managed to progressively dig himself a deep grave.

"What an _unexpected_ dedication." The stress in the man's pronunciation bordered to a snarl.

 _'Yeah, that's gonna be a very, very deep grave.'_ The understanding sounded like a grim resignation in his mind.

"I'm assuming you're her classmate for you to be so concerned of her well-being?"

That was when the circuits in Chad's head connected, and he'd strongly hoped he'd finally found a way to turn the circumstances in his favor.

"Actually, I'm the head of the High School Department's Student Council and is also in charge of handling transfer students. Rachel was surprisingly the only new student coming from the lower batches to enroll this year, so I thought as Council President, it was my duty to personally make sure she was comfy with the new environment."

The look on Mr. Mckenzie's face in reaction to his statements looked undeniably scandalized. He'd taken an ample amount of time for another round of visually scrutinizing him, as if slapping it to his face that there was just no chance for him to believe that everything Chad had said were facts.

"Lower batches? Does that mean you're older than her? And Student Council President? With that sort of untidy hair and wild get up?"

HIs disbelieving retort seemed to have been fired from a high-caliber gun, shooting all the prompt questions one-by-one which felt like elephant bullets to Chad's unfortunate ego.

Self-consciously, he'd run a hand through his lengthy golden bangs whilst angling his head to the side, completely flustered.

"Wild?" The adjective he'd been so graciously given silently ran free from underneath his breath, questioning it and all reasons of its validity.

He could very much accept the commentary on his hair. It _was_ starting to look a bit too unruly even for his taste but he's only got himself to blame for that for skipping out the haircut session in favor of his extracurricular activities.

But his 'get-up' of all things?

Inconspicuously, his blue eyes darted downwards to his bomber jacket and faded jeans.

It did look cool...didn't it? Justin thought so as well and complimented his fashion sense.

Though he could recall a time just a while back when Maurice said he looked like an absolute douchebag. Honestly, he would've been delighted with that had he been not in the predicament he was currently stuck in at the moment.

Not to mention Rachel's flatly unimpressed reaction on his appearance upon getting reacquainted with him again for the first time in their adolescent years.

Well, like father like daughter he supposed.

Chad heaved a breath he hadn't noticed he was holding.

Looks like it was the end of things. He could now comfortably settle 6 feet underground.

Renowned top operative of the Teens Next Door Chad Dickson a.k.a. Numbuh 274 defeated by none other than, his partner's father.

There was only one thing he could possibly think of, and perhaps it'd be enough in shedding the right amount of light on his relationship with Rachel.

"Well, of course I'd be older than her. But only for a year and a half and I'm only 1 grade level higher than she is. If you could remember the name 'Chad Dickson', then maybe it'd make more sense."

The incredulous look on Mr. Mckenzie's face had morphed to that of jolted realization, and he'd scanned the teen's features once more from the tone of his blonde hair to the defining characteristics on his face.

His inkling had been positive from the beginning, with the man's unfamiliar disposition towards him as the glaring give away.

"Dickson...? Ah, I remember you now. The son of that exasperating yet prestigious family from downtown."

 _'Exasperating, that's gold.'_ He'd thought in amusement. Of her mother and father, it was easy for Chad to recognize whom Rachel had taken after more from.

Brown eyes were then darkly focused on him, expressing anger in its most repressed state. "You always used to play with Rachel, spending time with her when Claire and I would have business to discuss with your parents."

The leveled voice yet menacing look painting Mr. Mckenzie's face had him spiraling in confusion, unable to decode which of which was the emotion he was trying to get across. Chad kept his silence in return, treading cautiously from the sudden turn of events.

And speaking of Mrs. Mckenzie, he'd sincerely wondered just where she was all morning. Usually, she'd be the only adult you'd encounter in the house due to her husband's frequent business trips. Just when you needed her the most to save you from her husband's FBI-like interrogation segment.

"There was a time when you frequented, even coming here on your own on a regular basis. But all of that suddenly stopped one day and Rachel started locking herself in her room more often."

Chad could remember that in full detail, as if it was imprinted on the palm of his hand. He gazed at the man before him whose maddened eyes began to fill with pain for his daughter.

Because that day was also the very day he'd shed his honorable leader identity and chose the path of an undercover operative.

Without telling her a single thing.

"We knew what was wrong even if she seemed to act the same when interacting with us. The cut of connection between the 2 of you was plain to see and you've hurt her badly."

He'd harshly gripped one side of his crossed arms with calloused fingers.

Of course, he'd caused her pain, there was no denying that. Rachel was a complex book he'd struggled to understand for years. If there was some sort of guide on how to decipher her, then the first item on the list would be that she had a tendency to act strong and unfazed.

She had quite a knack for persuading people to believe in her conjured up sound state of self, that for a while, he'd even come to believe it all to be true. Though at the back of his mind, he was aware that it was all nothing but a show.

His teeth ground in sheer frustration at himself, feeling a sense of failure nipping at him for being insufficient at taking care of someone he deems to be important.

"I wouldn't let my daughter suffer in the way that she did again. If you know for yourself that you can't be trusted and would betray her again, then leave this instance." Mr. Mckenzie then assumed a tone far more serious and hardened than the one he'd previously conversed with him by and narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Or if you choose to be pigheaded, the I wouldn't mind personally making sure you'd stay away from her for good. "

"I'd never do that." He hadn't known where he'd found the courage, but it was his best bet that it'd been kept far too long in his chest with the given moment being the only time for it to finally make its grand escape.

"I'm sorry. Teenage hood doesn't really hit everyone the same and it's been kinda' more complicated on my side. But that doesn't mean I've ever left Rachel on purpose. You could say we grew apart but I've never really forgotten about her. It's expected her dad would be hostile, but if you could spare a chance to believe me, then I'd be grateful. I'll never hurt her again."

The rage etched on the man's face softened, not quite expecting the resolute stare in Chad's eyes and words filled with evident honesty and conviction.

"Then you'd agree to see her as often as you used to?"

"Yes, of course I do."

"And to pick her up every morning for school? And to bring her home safely after?"

"I wouldn't mind if I did those."

"How about going out for the weekends and returning her calls?"

"The latter is a given, and it'd be fun to hang with her."

A satisfied smirk then slipped on Mr. Mckenzie's face as he eyed the boy before him.

"Then, it's settled."

Chad returned his gaze with blank bafflement. For a while it appeared as if they were engaged in a staring contest, with him attempting to analyze whatever it was that was 'settled' between them.

As if it was some sort of...agreement.

Just like that, the puzzle pieced together in his head. His eyes dilated in synchronization with his mouth hanging wide open at the moment of understanding looming over him. All the while, the curve on Mr. Mckenzie's lips simply deepened to a shrewd expression he swore he'd seen before.

_He'd passed the test. With flying colors at that._

The knob of the front door then turned which was subsequently opened to reveal a cheerful looking woman with shopping bags in her hands, along with a teenaged girl standing at the entrance.

"Honey, we're home from the market!" Mrs. Mckenzie energetically greeted the household, and quickly fished out the face of a familiar visitor joining them for that morning.

"Oh my, is that the little Chad we used to know? You've grown up so fast!"

"It's nice to see you again, Mrs. Mckenzie. Apologies for only dropping by now." He'd smiled to the woman in the naturally endearing way that he does. Over on the sidelines, he could make out a hint of Rachel's face, shaken with slight panic and shock at having him turn up at her house out of the blue.

"Let me help you in carrying those." With that he stood from his seat and retrieved the bags from Mrs. Mckenzie who'd greatly appreciated his assistance, before turning his attention to the slight blonde girl still confused with his presence.

Vivid hazel eyes stared up at him in unmistakable confusion.

"Chad? What are you doing here? And sitting on the couch with my dad of all things." Her question was left to hang in the air when he'd silently leaned down to retrieve the bags in her hands.

"8:30 PM, sharp. McClintock Middle. The Teen Ninjas are starting to make their move." He'd briefly paused his actions midway at her ear level, passing on the details of their upcoming mission.

Rachel immediately assumed her agent persona and subtly nodded her head. "Alright, got it. I'll be there."

"Oh, and more thing." Chad pushed on with their discourse upon standing upright. He'd shifted his irises from corner to corner as a light flush began to creep over his cheeks, before settling to focus them on her face.

She could only cock her head to the side out of curiousity. "Uhm, what is it?"

"Are you free for the rest of the day before duty?"

"Yes...what's up?"

"Would you like to go out for milkshakes?"

By now, Rachel wasn't exactly sure what to make to do with his train of thought. Her features scrunched up in dubiety, finding it rather ludicrous to buy the clear hint that he was asking her out.

"Err, why...?"

"Because," Chad reverted his eyes back to the corners, finding it difficult to form words with the deepening of the ignition on his face upon looking directly at her.

", your dad is one hell of a matchmaker."


End file.
